Nicolas Batum Aiming to Become an All-Star and NBA Champion

The Portland Trailblazers gave Nicolas Batum big money this summer, and now Batum says that it’s time for him to take his play to much higher levels. From CSNNW: “Portland Trail Blazers forward Nicolas Batum appears to be more confident and excited about the upcoming 2012-13 season, and the reason for that could be due to finally being on the verge of having a defined role with more responsibilities. And signing a 4-year, $46.5 million contract will often get you such an assignment. Batum says he knows people are looking for him to be an borderline All-Star in this league with his new deal and he’s in agreement with that line of thinking. However, he says he won’t be content with just that. ‘I signed an All-Star-type contract and now it’s up to me to play up to that level,’ Batum said. ‘I got team goals and personal goals I want to accomplish and becoming an All-Star one day is one of them. I want to be an NBA champion, I want to be a three-point champion. It’s all about winning in this league and I’m ready for that next step in my career.'”